Everton vs. Burnley Betting Tips: Ashley Young to be entered into the referee's book again
Premier League bottom half teams Everton and Burnley will fight for a place in this season's League Cup quarter-finals when they meet on Wednesday.
Everton's fortunes have somewhat shifted since bypassing Aston Villa in the third round of this competition a month ago. Sean Dyche has helped his side jump out of the relegation zone by winning three of their last five league fixtures, now boasting wins over Brentford, Bournemouth and West Ham.
In Burnley's case, Vincent Kompany has struggled to adapt to life in the top tier. The Clarets comfortably saw off Salford in the third round of this competition, but have only managed one more win from their opening 10 Premier League games. A defeat to Bournemouth last weekend could be a damning result for the Lancashire club and has certainly seen the pressure over the Belgian's job intensify in the following days after.
Everton vs Burnley Tips
Everton's dismal home record and Burnley's general underwhelming show since promotion has us avoiding a number of markets and instead opting for two cards-based punts on Wednesday, starting out with the away team to receive the most booking points at above even money with Sky Bet.
Burnley have picked up seven more yellows than their fourth round hosts in the league this term, receiving 22 bookings and three red cards to Everton's 15 and one sending off.
Amazingly, despite operating under the stewardship of Sean Dyche, a man whose reputation largely centres around devising rough and tumble teams, The Toffees are the second-most disciplined team in the division behind only Arsenal.
They were edged out 4-3 in this area during their visit to Villa Park last month in the EFL Cup, whereas Burnley's clash with Salford saw a card apiece dished out despite the comfortable 4-0 ruling in the Premier League side's favour on the scoresheet.
Referee Michael Salisbury has taken charge of a Burnley fixture this season as The Clarets were seen off by Aston Villa at Turf Moor, declaring this bet a winner with Burnley receiving two cautions to Villa's zero.
Whichever side progresses through to the next round here, the statistics suggest that Burnley are far more aggressive in their approach out of possession. The beacon of hope that a quarter-final League Cup tie might bring for strugglers Burnley is likely to see them itching to leave their stamp on this game, which we see translating to more cards for the visitors.
After serving a one-match suspension for his sending off in the Merseyside derby, Ashley Young is available for selection and could slot straight back into Everton's back line.
Although he's never been the worst culprit for fouls since converting himself from a winger into a full-back, the 38-year-old has been a reliable source for cards over the years.
Young remains rash in the challenge and as he grows older but remains at a highly competitive level of football, the pace is clearly taking its toll on him.
The Everton defender has picked up four yellows inside his last five matches, and will be under the close watch of referee Michael Salisbury at Goodison should he start. The Premier League official is averaging 2.50 yellows per game in the PL and has brandished at least one card in each of his last 20 games.
Jacob Brunn Larsen who has been limited to just one appearance for Burnley since joining strutted his stuff in the previous round of this competition, registering two shots on target and finding the net once. He should re-enter the starting XI for Burnley's trip and could pose a stern test for the aging defender.
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